Paolo Boffetta
Encyclopedia
Paolo Boffetta is an Italian
epidemiologist
. He is doing research on cancer
, where he contributed to the understanding of the role of alcohol
and smoking
in cancer
development.
, Italy
, went to the Vittorio Alfieri High School in Turin
, and studied medicine
at the University of Turin
and received a Doctor of Medicine
degree in 1982, after which he became a resident at the Second Division of Internal Medicine and Research Fellow and Research Assistant at the Cancer Epidemiology Unit of the University of Turin.
After some years, he moved to New York
and worked as a Research Assistant at the Department of Statistics and Epidemiology of the American Cancer Society
(1986–88). He became an Research Assistant at the Division of Epidemiology of the American Health Foundation in New York, in 1988 and a Graduate Research Assistant at the Division of Environmental Sciences and Post-Doctoral Associate at the Division of Health Policy and Management of Columbia University
, School of Public Health in New York (1988–89), where he was awarded a M.P.H..
In 1990, he moved to Lyon
, France
, to join the International Agency for Research on Cancer
, IARC, first as Medical Officer until 1994 and later as Chief of the Unit of Environmental Cancer Epidemiology (1995–2003). During this time he was also Visiting Scientist at the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, US National Cancer Institute
, in Washington
(1998/99), Foreign Adjunct Professor, at the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Microbiology and Tumour Biology Centre, Karolinska Institutet
, Stockholm, Sweden (2000–2006).
In 2003, he moved on to the German Cancer Research Center
in Heidelberg
, Germany
, where he headed the Division of Clinical Epidemiology. He was awarded a Professorship for Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Heidelberg in the same year.
Only a year later Boffetta moved back to IARC, Lyon to become Group Head and the first Coordinator of the Genetics and Epidemiology Cluster there.
Since 2001 he is Visiting Professor at the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, University of Turin, Italy and since 2002 Adjunct Professor, at the Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University
, Nashville, USA. In 2009 he became Affiliate of the R. Samuel McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment, University of Ottawa
, Canada and Adjunct Professor at the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health
, Boston, USA.
In 2009 he left IARC and joined the faculty of Mount Sinai School of Medicine
in New York, NY, as Professor and Deputy Director of the Tisch Cancer Institute. He is also Vice President of the International Prevention Research Institute
in Lyon
.
. He always was very much interested in international collaboration why he was founding member and member of the executive committee of the several international research consortia, e.g. Interlymph – Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma consortium (2001–08), the ILCCO – Lung cancer
consortium (2003-), the INHANCE – Head and neck cancer
consortium (2004-) or more recently in 2006 the PANC4 – Pancreatic cancer
consortium and the ESC3 – Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
consortium.
Currently Boffetta is involved in several case-control studies of molecular epidemiology in different organs and countries around the world (among are: lung, head and neck, kidney and pancreatic cancer in Poland, Russia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and the UK; head and neck cancer in Brazil, Argentina and Cuba; lymphoma in France, Spain, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Czech Republic). Cohort studies
with his participation are running in Germany, France, Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Finland and Israel for lung cancer risk among asphalt workers; and in Iran for esophageal cancer. Other studies where he is the principal investigator are the retrospective mortality study and cohort study of alcohol-associated cancers in Western Siberia, Russia; the Case-only and case-control study of hepatocellular carcinoma
within the International Liver Cancer Study (3 centers in Thailand, Egypt and Italy); or the Case-control study of esophageal cancer in high-risk populations (2 centers in Iran and India).
Paolo Boffetta is a Member of the Steering Committee of the Asia Cohort Consortium (ACC) and was Chair of the Molecular Epidemiology Group (MEG) of the American Association for Cancer Research
(AACR) (2008–2009).
He was heavily involved in teaching activities during all his academic and research positions; e.g., at IARC he held the post of Director, IARC Course Programme (2000–2003 and 2004–2009). Further one he was Director of the IARC Fellowship Programme (2004–2009) and a Member of the UICC Fellowship Committee (2000–2009).
Currently he is a Member of the editorial board of several scientific journals including Annals of Occupational Hygiene, Biomarkers, European Journal of Clinical Investigation, International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, International Journal of Molecular Epidemiology and Genetics, Lung Cancer (associate editor), and the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health.
Paolo Boffetta has published more than 670 scientific articles and 80 book chapters as well as is editor of some 14 books and journal supplements and has authored several other non-English and non-scientific articles about smoking and drinking prevention.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
epidemiologist
Epidemiology
Epidemiology is the study of health-event, health-characteristic, or health-determinant patterns in a population. It is the cornerstone method of public health research, and helps inform policy decisions and evidence-based medicine by identifying risk factors for disease and targets for preventive...
. He is doing research on cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
, where he contributed to the understanding of the role of alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
and smoking
Smoking
Smoking is a practice in which a substance, most commonly tobacco or cannabis, is burned and the smoke is tasted or inhaled. This is primarily practised as a route of administration for recreational drug use, as combustion releases the active substances in drugs such as nicotine and makes them...
in cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
development.
Biography
Boffetta was born in TurinTurin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, went to the Vittorio Alfieri High School in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, and studied medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
at the University of Turin
University of Turin
The University of Turin is a university in the city of Turin in the Piedmont region of north-western Italy...
and received a Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
degree in 1982, after which he became a resident at the Second Division of Internal Medicine and Research Fellow and Research Assistant at the Cancer Epidemiology Unit of the University of Turin.
After some years, he moved to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and worked as a Research Assistant at the Department of Statistics and Epidemiology of the American Cancer Society
American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society is the "nationwide community-based voluntary health organization" dedicated, in their own words, "to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer, through research, education, advocacy, and...
(1986–88). He became an Research Assistant at the Division of Epidemiology of the American Health Foundation in New York, in 1988 and a Graduate Research Assistant at the Division of Environmental Sciences and Post-Doctoral Associate at the Division of Health Policy and Management of Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, School of Public Health in New York (1988–89), where he was awarded a M.P.H..
In 1990, he moved to Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, to join the International Agency for Research on Cancer
International Agency for Research on Cancer
The International Agency for Research on Cancer is an intergovernmental agency forming part of the World Health Organisation of the United Nations....
, IARC, first as Medical Officer until 1994 and later as Chief of the Unit of Environmental Cancer Epidemiology (1995–2003). During this time he was also Visiting Scientist at the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, US National Cancer Institute
National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health , which is one of 11 agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCI coordinates the U.S...
, in Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
(1998/99), Foreign Adjunct Professor, at the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Microbiology and Tumour Biology Centre, Karolinska Institutet
Karolinska Institutet
Karolinska institutet is a medical university in Solna within the Stockholm urban area, Sweden, and one of Europe's largest medical universities...
, Stockholm, Sweden (2000–2006).
In 2003, he moved on to the German Cancer Research Center
German Cancer Research Center
The German Cancer Research Center , is a national cancer research center based in Heidelberg, Germany...
in Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, where he headed the Division of Clinical Epidemiology. He was awarded a Professorship for Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Heidelberg in the same year.
Only a year later Boffetta moved back to IARC, Lyon to become Group Head and the first Coordinator of the Genetics and Epidemiology Cluster there.
Since 2001 he is Visiting Professor at the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, University of Turin, Italy and since 2002 Adjunct Professor, at the Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
, Nashville, USA. In 2009 he became Affiliate of the R. Samuel McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment, University of Ottawa
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa is a bilingual, research-intensive, non-denominational, international university in Ottawa, Ontario. It is one of the oldest universities in Canada. It was originally established as the College of Bytown in 1848 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate...
, Canada and Adjunct Professor at the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health
Harvard School of Public Health
The Harvard School of Public Health is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University, located in the Longwood Area of the Boston, Massachusetts neighborhood of Mission Hill, which is next to Harvard Medical School. HSPH is considered a significant school focusing on health in the...
, Boston, USA.
In 2009 he left IARC and joined the faculty of Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Mount Sinai School of Medicine is an American medical school in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, currently ranked among the top 20 medical schools in the United States. It was chartered by Mount Sinai Hospital in 1963....
in New York, NY, as Professor and Deputy Director of the Tisch Cancer Institute. He is also Vice President of the International Prevention Research Institute
International Prevention Research Institute
The International Prevention Research Institute - iPRI is an independent research organisation founded by a group of Scientists. iPRI’s Mission is to work towards the improvement of health in populations worldwide by identifying critical issues in disease determination and prevention.-Main Research...
in Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
.
Scientific merits
Boffetta's specific field of research is the study of environmental factors for cancerCancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
. He always was very much interested in international collaboration why he was founding member and member of the executive committee of the several international research consortia, e.g. Interlymph – Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma consortium (2001–08), the ILCCO – Lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
consortium (2003-), the INHANCE – Head and neck cancer
Head and neck cancer
Head and neck cancer refers to a group of biologically similar cancers that start in the upper aerodigestive tract, including the lip, oral cavity , nasal cavity , paranasal sinuses, pharynx, and larynx. 90% of head and neck cancers are squamous cell carcinomas , originating from the mucosal lining...
consortium (2004-) or more recently in 2006 the PANC4 – Pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...
consortium and the ESC3 – Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes, primarily squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma . Squamous cell cancer arises from the cells that line the upper part of the esophagus...
consortium.
Currently Boffetta is involved in several case-control studies of molecular epidemiology in different organs and countries around the world (among are: lung, head and neck, kidney and pancreatic cancer in Poland, Russia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and the UK; head and neck cancer in Brazil, Argentina and Cuba; lymphoma in France, Spain, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Czech Republic). Cohort studies
Cohort study
A cohort study or panel study is a form of longitudinal study used in medicine, social science, actuarial science, and ecology. It is an analysis of risk factors and follows a group of people who do not have the disease, and uses correlations to determine the absolute risk of subject contraction...
with his participation are running in Germany, France, Denmark, Norway, Netherlands, Finland and Israel for lung cancer risk among asphalt workers; and in Iran for esophageal cancer. Other studies where he is the principal investigator are the retrospective mortality study and cohort study of alcohol-associated cancers in Western Siberia, Russia; the Case-only and case-control study of hepatocellular carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common type of liver cancer. Most cases of HCC are secondary to either a viral hepatitide infection or cirrhosis .Compared to other cancers, HCC is quite a rare tumor in the United States...
within the International Liver Cancer Study (3 centers in Thailand, Egypt and Italy); or the Case-control study of esophageal cancer in high-risk populations (2 centers in Iran and India).
Paolo Boffetta is a Member of the Steering Committee of the Asia Cohort Consortium (ACC) and was Chair of the Molecular Epidemiology Group (MEG) of the American Association for Cancer Research
American Association for Cancer Research
The American Association for Cancer Research is the world's oldest and largest professional association to advancing cancer research. Based in Philadelphia, AACR focuses on all aspects of cancer research including basic, clinical and translational research into the etiology, prevention, diagnosis,...
(AACR) (2008–2009).
He was heavily involved in teaching activities during all his academic and research positions; e.g., at IARC he held the post of Director, IARC Course Programme (2000–2003 and 2004–2009). Further one he was Director of the IARC Fellowship Programme (2004–2009) and a Member of the UICC Fellowship Committee (2000–2009).
Currently he is a Member of the editorial board of several scientific journals including Annals of Occupational Hygiene, Biomarkers, European Journal of Clinical Investigation, International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, International Journal of Molecular Epidemiology and Genetics, Lung Cancer (associate editor), and the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health.
Paolo Boffetta has published more than 670 scientific articles and 80 book chapters as well as is editor of some 14 books and journal supplements and has authored several other non-English and non-scientific articles about smoking and drinking prevention.